Desktop
Theme - Instructions
How to install the desktop theme properly.
Step
1 - Downloading the Theme This should prompt you to either save or open
the file. In order to preserve the theme for a later installation or to give to
your friends, we recommend that you save the theme in a folder on your computer.
After clicking 'save', the browser will prompt you for a location to save the
theme. If this is the first time you have downloaded a theme you will need to
create a folder to save the themes in. We suggest making a new folder on the desktop
of your system to keep them in, so that the folder is always accessible. Save
the theme in the folder created on the desktop, which should be listed and easy
to find in the drop down list available in the save dialog. Select the new folder
and click ok, and the file will begin downloading to your computer. Once the file
has completed downloading (which will be obvious by the dialog) then you are ready
for step
Step 2 - Opening the file Now that you have the
file on your system, you need to open it and extract out the theme from inside.
This is accomplished by using one of many Compression Tools to 'unzip' the file.
If you do not already have one of these utilities installed on your computer,
They will download as a zip file, so simply double click on the downloaded file
to install the utility. When you have installed the compression utility and are
ready to decompress or extract the theme from the zipped file you downloaded,
double click the zip file so that your compression utility opens the file for
you. The programs will display the contents of the theme file that you opened,
and you are ready for step
Step 3 - Extracting the theme
Once the file is open and ready to be extracted, you need to examine the contents
in order to determine how to extract the files correctly so that they end up in
the right place. Generally, each desktop theme needs to be placed in a directory
of its own, appropriately named, in the C:\program files\Plus!\themes\ directory.
Unfortunately, the way that the theme files are saved in the zip file, they will
often contain the original directory structure that the file resided in, or at
least some portion of it. You will have to look at the contents of the file, plainly
visible once you have opened it as directed above, and determine if it has the
original directory structure was saved in the archive. Once you figure out where
the program will want to put the files, make sure that all but the .theme file
end up in a subdirectory of the C:\program files\Plus!\themes\ directory, and
that the .theme file ends up in the C:\program files\Plus!\themes\ directory.
(Or the appropriate corresponding directory in the international versions of Windows
95) Most themes that include screensavers or startup and shutdown screens will
retain the full path of all the files in the archive, meaning that you simply
need to extract the files to the C: drive and let it go at that. It is important
to remember that the logo.sys (startup screen) will have to reside in the root
startup directory, so if your computer uses a compressed drive, you need to locate
the file on the host drive, not in the compressed volume. Getting the file into
the right directory is most important when installing the theme, so take the time
to do it right. Once it has been properly extracted, you are ready to go onto
the final step, step
Step 4 - Using the themes In order
to use the newly installed theme, you need to either have Microsoft Plus installed
or install one of the various Installation Utilities available for download at
FREETHEMES.COM. Click Here to go our download section for these utilities and
download one to suit you. If you have MS Plus! or Windows98 installed, you can
use the theme by opening the control panel and selecting the "desktop themes"
icon. Click on the drop down list of installed themes, select the one you want,
and click 'ok.' There are a good deal of options to select here, mainly to enable/disable
elements of the theme itself. If the theme you installed does not appear in the
drop down list, you have made an error and will need to reinstall the theme again
according to the directions above. If you do not have either of the above software
packages installed in your computer, use one of the utilities in the Installation
Utilities section to use the themes. They all work somewhat differently, so take
the time to read the instructions before trying them out. These third party programs
can be somewhat more involved than the control panel desktop themes program, but
they all do pretty much the same thing in a different way.
Installing
Screensavers Most of the screensavers that you download seperately from
the desktop themes are packaged in a zip file. Read STEP 2 to find out how to
use the zip file. Most screensavers are more than the simple .scr file that windows
requires to run the screensaver, so you will usually install the screensaver like
any other program you download, that is, that you extract all the files from the
.zip file and run the setup.exe included. However, many are just the .scr file,
and the .scr files need to be extracted to the Windows directory on your hard
drive. Once they are there, you can enable them by double clicking on MY COMPUTER,
then double click on CONTROL PANEL, then on DISPLAY, then click the tab that says
SCREEN SAVERS and select the new screensaver from the drop down list box that
you find there. You can then click on SETTING to configure the screensaver (if
applicable) and on PREVIEW to test it. That's all there is to installing screensavers!
Installing Cursors After downloading your favorite cursor and
unzipping it (please read STEP 2 above for detailed instructions on how to unzip
a file), save the cursor in the C:\Windows\Cursors directory. Begin the installation
by opening the START menu and selecting SETTINGS, then CONTROL PANEL and then
MOUSE. In the MOUSE directory, click on the POINTERS tab. Once in the POINTERS
settings, click on the type of cursor you want to change. For example, Normal
Select, the cursor we most commonly see. After selecting the cursor you want to
change, click BROWSE to find your new cursor in the C:\Windows\Cursors directory.
Then click APPLY. Simple as that!
Installing True Type Fonts
Nothing could be simpler than installing a font! After downloading the font of
your choice and unzipping it (please read STEP 2 above in Installing Themes for
detailed instructions on how to unzip a file), save your font in the C:\Windows\Fonts
directory. That's it! (You may need to restart certain applications, or possibly
your computer, to use your new font.) Please note: These instructions are for
the English version of Windows 95/98 only. Other systems may vary.
Installing Icons After downloading the icon pack you want to use and unzipping
it (please read STEP 2 above in Installing Themes for detailed instructions on
how to unzip a file), extract the files to the default windows directory (usually
C:\Windows). In Windows Explorer go to the VIEW menu, then select Folder Options
and click the FILE TYPES tab. Find the file type you want to change and click
EDIT. Then select CHANGE ICON and go to the C:\Windows folder and select the appropriate
icon.
